When a white waitress greeted her customer, the man immediately requested a server who is black. However, after she explained that she would be serving him, the man proceeded to leave her a “racist” note on the receipt.
While working at a restaurant in South End Charlotte, North Carolina, a waitress says she experienced a disheartening encounter with one of her customers. Now, she’s hoping the interaction will alert individuals to the damage of racial bias, but not just against minorities.
The woman, who wishes for her name and restaurant to remain anonymous, told FOX 46 that she warmly greeted a black customer who sat at her table only to be rejected due to an immutable characteristic. She explained that he took one look at her and immediately wrote her off, asking for a non-white waiter.
“He looked up from his menu and immediately said, ‘May I have a black server?’” the waitress said.
Unprepared for such a request, the waitress politely responded that she would be his server and would do her best to assist him. Of course, the odd request stuck with her for the entirety of the meal, which seemed to satisfy the customer. However, she would soon discover that her determination to serve the man wouldn’t change his perception.
After he had finished his meal and paid the check, the waitress noticed several things wrong with the receipt. Not only had the customer left her without a tip, but he also wrote the words “Black Power” on the top of the receipt, as if to send the woman a message of racial supremacy.
“I was just, like, completely in shock, I was like, ‘What?’,” she said. “The African-Americans that I work with and who I’m close with were just like, that’s unbelievable, like, no one deserves that.”
The waitress hadn’t noticed the message until after the man had left. Since he used a pre-paid debit card, his name was not listed on the receipt, leaving reporters unable to contact him in order to hear his reasoning. Instead, FOX 46 asked a local sociology professor to provide his assessment of the encounter.
The professor acknowledged that the incident was undoubtedly steeped in racism as it fits the textbook definition of racially biased behavior as well as the self-segregation that follows.
“That clearly fits the definition of prejudice and prejudice based on race, yes that’s racism so, yes, I think we can say she’s a victim of a racist incident,” Wingate University Sociology Chair Dr. Aaron Culley said.
However, Culley seemed to trivialize the woman’s mistreatment ironically due to the fact that she is white and her abuser is black. Instead of simply condemning the man’s behavior, he focused on the justification for such mentality and speculated in order to offer an excuse for the man’s reasoning.
“White Americans are much-less likely to experience institutional discrimination because most institutions are controlled by white people,” Culley said. “One person wants to avoid interacting or minimize their interaction with another group. It sounds like he just doesn’t want a white person waiting on him and it’s that form of prejudice.”
Culley softened the racist encounter by referring to it as “social distancing,” arguing that the black customer likely felt more comfortable around people of his own skin color. The waitress rejected this excuse, insisting that racism is wrong no matter who is on the receiving end. Still, she says she holds no ill will against the customer and will continue to fight bigotry with kindness.
“What can I do to help you get through that? Because it’s got to be sad living that way, hating someone you don’t know,” she said.
Just as the professor seems to demonstrate, many have resorted to the bigotry of low expectations, which treats racial minorities as incapable of extending benevolence and non-judgment. This mentality offers excuses for bad behavior instead of holding one accountable for their actions, regardless of their race.
Racism is dangerous no matter which race is affected. History has repeatedly proven this, and no race is safe from the disastrous effects of tribalism and hate.
